Creamed
by Showan
Summary: STC based. Set after Rivals Of Chaos. Mobius is still sighing with relief as Robotnik is in jail. But someone's taking advantage of this, and that someone has big plans. Finished.
1. Prologue

Creamed  
  
This story is set after my Sonic Adventure 2 adaptation, which you ought to read first as it's completely different from the story in the game. All characters are copyright to whoever . Prologue: Wanted Dead or Alive  
  
It was around about midnight. The Emerald Hill Zone was mostly silent, as was the former Freedom Fighters' base. Knuckles the Echidna was staying in a small spare room on the ground floor, until he got his Floating Island working again. He was just on the point of drifting off to sleep with the rest of the world.  
There was a volley of frantic taps on his window. He started, and got up slowly, grumbling. Since he met Sonic, there was only one thing any event like this could lead to: a long and dangerous adventure, in which his Emeralds were scattered all around the planet, his sacred home attacked and desecrated and everything falling apart just as he had been about to fix it again.  
The knocks came again, impatiently. Knuckles opened his door and looked out. There was a blur and the door slammed as someone shot inside the room. Knuckles spun around, ready for attack, but the person just took a step backwards and collapsed onto his bed in exhaustion. It was Rouge the Bat. As far as Knuckles could make out.  
Her clothes were ripped and torn. They were black already, so they didn't show the scorch marks they had, but Rouge's pure white fur was another matter. As well as charcoal, it was covered in mud, water, grime and blood. She pulled herself up to her feet, and stood, swaying slightly.  
"What the heck happened to you?" Knuckles asked.  
Her voice was a collection of gasps, and her breathing was heavy. "I have just been stabbed in the back, seven times in one night."  
"Oh." Knuckles pulled over his chair for Rouge, and sat on the end of the bed. He wasn't sure whether to be kind or suspicious. Rouge was, after all, a thief who'd sworn to take his most prized possessions. But they'd parted, two weeks ago, on more or less good terms. Rouge had actually vanished away as soon as they landed while everyone else kept their eyes on Robotnik, and no one had heard of her since then.  
"G.U.N. have been hunting me solidly ever since I quit." Rouge elaborated. "All my old contacts instantly produced a legion of robots as I arrived at the door. They've chased me halfway round Mobius by now."  
"Why do you get all the special attention?"  
"I was supposed to be their spy, remember? I read all their top secret files."  
"But. I thought you were a criminal and they forced you to be a spy. They couldn't trust you that much."  
"They never trust anyone. When I was caught, they fitted me with one of those bombs that could be remotely detonated at any time. No one ever left G.U.N. before." Knuckles' eyes widened in horror. "Why haven't they just used that?" he asked.  
"I got your canary friend to diffuse it for me on the way down from the space station. Then I reported back to the boss and told I quit," Rouge grinned, "in purely four letter words."  
"Ah."  
"Then the boss made me a top priority case."  
"And so now you're on the run?"  
"Yes."  
"So why have you come here?"  
"Because you would never betray anyone. You've got too many morals."  
Knuckles noticed Rouge open her mouth to add something, then close it again. "And. ?"  
Rouge looked as if she didn't dare to be hopeful. "Does your Floating Island actually exist?"  
"Yes." said Knuckles, guardedly.  
"G.U.N. don't know about it. If I could stay up there for just a short time, I'd be perfectly safe."  
Knuckles leaned back. "That Island is full of priceless treasures. You're the best thief in the business. I'm not an idiot." "I promise I won't take anything. I haven't had time to do any stealing at all; I've been on the run the whole time. Look, even if I did take your Emerald, where could I go? The only safe place on Mobius is this Island, and if I try to hide on that I'll get completely lost."  
Knuckles was uncertain. "Let me think about it. I'll tell you tomorrow morning."  
"Thank you." Rouge pulled her blackened bag off her back and took out a red Chaos Emerald. Its glow outlined Knuckles' expression. "I took it on the ARK," she said, hurriedly. "I heard you say you didn't need it to make your Island work. Here, you can have it."  
Knuckles had no idea what to say to that. He gave up. "Um. thanks. I'll go and get you some new clothes. You can sleep in the bed. I'll take the floor."  
He left and Rouge heard him tiptoeing up a flight of stairs. He clumped and creaked around for a while, then crept back down again. He opened the door with a loud clunk.  
Rouge winced. "Take my advice: never try housebreaking."  
Knuckles, who to anyone moved without a sound, grinned. "Okay." He handed her a set of clothes, and some pyjamas. They were blue and had orange aeroplanes on them. "They're Tails'." said Knuckles.  
"I suppose you think this is funny?"  
"Yep."  
  
Rouge awoke early out of habit, but the bed was so comfortable that she didn't get up until about six. She pulled on the clothes she'd been given and cautiously stepped outside. Knuckles was standing some way away with Porker Lewis. They were discussing something and looking toward the coast. Rouge looked and saw what must be the Floating Island. It was much larger than she'd expected, and it was floating on the surface of the water. Looking harder, Rouge saw it had been tethered with hundreds of chains to stop it floating away. She did not interrupt them and crept away- G.U.N. would probably come looking for her soon.  
If she couldn't hide, she'd have to fight. 


	2. Cream

Creamed This story is set after my Sonic Adventure 2 adaptation, which you ought to read first as it's completely different from the story in the game. I have never played on Sonic Advance 2, I have no idea what Cream's official story or personality is. All characters are copyright to whoever.  
  
Part 1: Cream  
  
The Hidden Palace was totally destroyed. Knuckles surveyed the glittering wreckage mournfully. The altar that had once displayed the Chaos Emeralds was cracked in two. It had already been in disuse, ever since Robotnik had first stolen from him. He shifted two chunks of masonry. It was lucky he had hesitated to let Rouge hide here- the Palace had been constructed almost entirely of jewels. They split the bright sun into hundreds of little rainbows. Knuckles paused, thinking about the bat. Should he let her stay? Or was he just being stupid and gullible for the umpteenth time?  
He pulled away enough rubble to expose the hole in the middle of the altar. There used to be a shining beam of energy sparkling out of this. He jumped down the hole, apprehensive.  
He landed softly twenty feet below. His base had faired better then he'd feared. The computers were all mercifully alright- even Porker wouldn't be able to replace them if they were damaged. Knuckles cleared some rocks away from one of the old Zoom Tube entrances. He zoomed straight back to the surface: he'd have to have the Island in the air again before he could properly drain the network of tunnels underground.  
The only other really important buildings were Megaopolis City, which had been ruined for years, and the Sky Sanctuary. Knuckles had already rebuilt this once, as a home for his pteranodon. He would have to make it much stronger next time.  
Still, all things considered it could have been worse. Knuckles walked quickly over the thick chain that served as a bridge to the beach. He'd fetch some tools and start as soon as possible.  
He was suddenly surrounded by robots.  
  
Knuckles didn't waste time thinking. He automatically ducked and dived, driving his fist through the blue armour of the newest G.U.N. model. The others blew its body to pieces as their shots missed him. Knuckles caught its head, red hot, and hurled it at the next victim. The android shattered into sparks.  
The two survivors did not move. One spoke instead. "Cease attacking, Mobian."  
Knuckles kept his fists ready and did not move.  
"You were contacted last night by a wanted criminal. It is your duty to help G.U.N. by giving us all the information you have."  
Knuckles inwardly swore. They were closer to Rouge then she realised. Worse, they'd taken advantage of his thinking this and now had two large lasers pointed at his head. He wished he had Sonic's reflexes; he couldn't rely on his own speed at the moment.  
He raised his hands and marched when they told him, taking this time size up the soldiers. They were basically human shaped, with cobalt blue armour. Their faces were blank, except for a band of black with two ruby lights glowering out from it. Evil-looking laser guns were mounted on their hands and shoulders. Tough cookies indeed.  
Knuckles grew bored of walking, and with a massive fist wrenched a laser of each robot's shoulder. He ducked and let them shoot each other, and tumbled to the ground as a shot clipped his head. Scorched metal thudded in the sand around him. He stood up, and kicked one of them to relieve the pain clawing at the back of his skull. He became aware that he was being watched.  
A small girl was regarding him with interest from the shore. She was a rabbit, with beige fur that darkened around her eyes and ears. She was wearing a plain dress and was up to her knees in water. She must have been about seven or eight. A blue chao was paddling next to her, camouflaged by the tropical colour of the ocean. Knuckles nodded an acknowledgement and began to walk away.  
She caught him up. "Excuse me, but you should clear those up. It's littering if you don't."  
Knuckles stopped. "Pardon?"  
"You shouldn't litter, you know. Come on, I'll help you throw those away." Knuckles followed her back along the coast bemusedly. When he smashed robots, people usually either started shooting or cheered. They didn't lecture him on littering. Still, Knuckles humoured her and hefted the two robotic bodies over his shoulder. The girl carefully gathered up the twisted guns and they took them back to the Emerald Hill Zone. Knuckles thought Porker might enjoy examining them. He just hoped Sonic wasn't around when he showed up at the base carrying robot remains at the command of a toddler.  
  
He was. Sonic raised his eyebrows quizzically over the comic he was reading as Knuckles trudged toward the door.  
"We're putting these in a safe place," said Knuckles. "We shouldn't be littering, see?" and he deposited them on the lawn.  
"Whose this?" asked Sonic. The girl curtseyed.  
"My name's Cream. Are you Sonic the Hedgehog?" Sonic grinned and nodded. "Mum talks about you."  
"Everyone talks about me. I'm big news."  
A large red hammer hit him on the head. "Don't be so arrogant, spikeball." Amy grinned.  
Sonic rubbed his head. "Where the heck did you get that?"  
"I won it somewhere." Amy threw it in the air and caught it again. "It's been great fun."  
"Sonic, make her put that down," called Tails as he approached. He too sported a large bump on his forehead. "Hello," he said as he saw Cream.  
  
"Hello," said Cream. Amy, who hadn't noticed the rabbit, jumped in surprise.  
"Hi," she said, feeling idiotic.  
Knuckles explained. "She told me to pick up some Badniks I'd smashed. I thought Porker might be interested- you know he loves that kind of thing. I'll go and fetch him."  
"Don't worry, I'll do it." She grinned evilly and twiddled her new toy.  
"Sonic, you have to make her put that down," began Tails. "She just won't stop playing with it, and it hurts!"  
"I know," he said, empathetically. "Where on Mobius did she get that thing anyway?"  
"She and Tekno were visiting the new casino they finished a couple of days ago. She one the archery contest and they gave her that."  
"Let's go and beat them up."  
"Yeah." Tails turned to Cream as he sat down in the shade under the huge tree that was their base. "How d'you do?" he asked Cream.  
"I'm okay. Who are you?"  
"I'm Tails."  
"Hi, Tails. Do you know-"  
At that point Porker Lewis interrupted. The pig looked distinctly disgruntled. "Why's Amy going around with that dirty great hammer?" he demanded.  
"Did it hurt?"  
"Yes!"  
"Join the club." Cream stifled a giggle. "Oh yeah, this is Cream. Knuckles found her." Porker nodded a welcome.  
Cream smiled back. "Um, Sonic?" she said.  
"Yeah?"  
"I've been trying to find you. Mum said to give you this." She held out an envelope. Sonic took it, puzzled. He opened it, read it, and stopped.  
"What's wrong?" asked Tails. Sonic handed it to him. "Oh dear."  
"What is it?" asked Porker.  
"It's from someone called Daniel Lightfoot." Porker and Tails looked worriedly at Sonic, who was still gazing at his empty hand. He motioned to walk away, and the pig and the rabbit followed him. Cream was concerned. "He's asking us to let you stay for a while, because his warren's too overcrowded."  
Cream nodded. "I know. I'm supposed to stay with my cousin, Johnny."  
Tails and Porker glanced hopelessly at each other. "But. there's a complication," Porker said at last. "Johnny's dead."  
Cream's eyes widened and filled with tears. The other two felt extremely awkward. "We're sorry." Creamed sniffed and blinked her tears out.  
"So, I can't stay?" she managed.  
"Oh, you can stay," said Tails hurriedly. "But we'll have to go and tell Daniel. Is he your father?"  
"My uncle," Creamed sobbed. Amy appeared at the door. She frowned questioningly at Tails. He indicated the letter.  
"Oh dear. has Sonic read this?" They nodded. "He won't take it too well." Nor was Cream. Amy put a hand on her shoulder. The other two felt even more awkward and went inside, leaving Amy to talk to Cream. Amy followed them after a few minutes. "She's out there with Sonic. I think we'd best leave them."  
  
Somewhere else, someone else giggled. It had taken him months. It had cost time and effort. It was worth every tedious second.  
Everything was now officially ready, and soon the explosions could begin. 


	3. Down And Out

Creamed This story is set after my Sonic Adventure 2 adaptation, which you ought to read first as it's completely different from the story in the game. I have never played on Sonic Advance 2, I have no idea what Cream's official story or personality is. All characters are copyright to whoever.  
  
Part 2: Down And Out  
  
"Sonic, you'd better get up here, fast!" yelled Porker from the top of the tree. Sonic and Cream arrived a couple of seconds later, Cream wearing an expression of amazement.  
"How did you go so fast?"  
"It's what I do. What's up, Lewis?" Sonic was actually quite grateful to have something to take his mind off Johnny Lightfoot. Cream had made him describe again how his friend had died, which Sonic hadn't done willingly.  
"Badniks. Or robots of some kind. They're coming from the abandoned Chemical Plant and Kintobor's detected a huge amount of weapons with them. We ought to check it out before they reach any towns or cities."  
Sonic nodded, and vanished in a blue haze. "Yo, Tails, get down here," he bellowed as he tumbled down the stairs. Tails shot out of a window just as Sonic blasted through the door and they sped over the grass just like old times.  
"What's the situation?"  
"Badniks. Chemical Plant Zone. The usual." The running and the prospect of smashing things cheered Sonic immensely. "Yeehaa!"  
  
Amy heard the sonic booms and saw blue and orange streaks blast over the horizon. Curiously she operated her wrist communicator and got Porker. "What's up?"  
"Badnik army. Near the Chemical Plant Z- hang, on, it's disappeared!"  
An unexpected blow to the back knocked Amy to her knees. She dived and rolled and spun around to see the lead Badnik crush her crossbow to splinters.  
"Um, Porker, I've found your army. Where shall I put it?" And then she ran.  
  
The Badniks were patched together from old pieces they had smashed years ago. Most were orange and brown with different shades of rust, and two fell apart as they activated their engines. The other fifty of them were in hot pursuit. If only she had her crossbow. but she didn't, and she couldn't fight that many using just her hands.  
Their base appeared over the horizon. She had a spare crossbow back there. Of course, the rest of them wouldn't thank her when the Badniks trashed the place. "Amy!"  
It was Cream, running towards her. "Run, Cream!" Amy warned. The rabbit turned and bolted back to the base, Amy arriving gasping a few minutes later. "My crossbow!" she told Cream, "Get my crossbow!" Panic- stricken, Cream ran up the first staircase.  
"Which room is yours?" she cried.  
"Oh heck." Amy grabbed her hammer and pelted outside. Fifty to one odds weren't good. But she had a hammer.  
The Badniks arrived in one unstoppable cloud. Amy swung her weapon over her head with a savage war cry of "Yahoo!" and leapt into the enemy.  
  
"Oh no. not again." Porker saw the world outside the workshop's clear ceiling blacken as it was obscured by countless robots. He overcame his paralysing fear enough to dive behind the closest obstacle he could find as the dome cracked and metal insects poured in.  
He crouched silently, his worst nightmare replaying all around him. He prayed that it wouldn't hear his gibbering over Kintobor's angry yells. A ball of flame reduced Kintobor's monitor to static.  
"You aren't silencing me that easily," Kintobor growled as his face appeared on a hundred screens at once and his voice boomed out of the huge speaker Porker hid behind. "You call yourselves computerised? I can run circles around you. See?"  
A Badnik collapsed on the floor as if it was having a fit. "Such simple minds you lot have," said Kintobor, as he targeted another one and hacked into it. He dumped several gigabytes of rubbished into the robot's mind, and watched it as it debated whether it was a Badnik or a banking system. He selected another victim and reformatted it. "Weak. That's what you are. What the heck are you doing?"  
One robot had stopped vandalising its surroundings and was now inserting a CD into Kintobor's drive. Kintobor hacked into it and deleted all its programming but he was too late. He could feel the virus on the disk activate. He immediately bombarded it with pure binary data, but it had already spread like a cancer all over his system. Very slowly, fighting all the way, he blacked out.  
  
"Mission objective attained." Porker opened his eyes in surprise. The Badniks simultaneously turned and fled, the few surviving robots that'd been fighting with Amy joining them. Cautiously he peeked over the speaker. Everything was in ruins. All his precious gadgets were strewn about like wrapping paper. The Chaos Emeralds were gone.  
Porker leapt to his feet, but he found them all, amongst the rubble. He cursed himself for being so careless- those robots could have taken them so easily. Luckily they had only been programmed for one purpose. He surveyed the empty screen where Kintobor had been. The Badniks had somehow switched him off.  
Rebooting him wouldn't take to long, provided there wasn't- Porker groaned. If there was a virus on that CD that could knock out Kintobor, it would take weeks to fix. He started straightaway.  
Amy and Cream interrupted instantly by climbing through the trap door. "Oh my God." Cream remarked.  
"Porker, are you all right?"  
"I'm okay. The Badniks came in and gave Kintobor a virus. He'll be out of action for a while."  
"You mean this attack was just meant to take out Kintobor?"  
"Looks like it to me."  
"Why bother?"  
"'Why bother?' He's only the only thing controlling our entire computer system, our communications, all our spy cameras, everything we need to-"  
"Okay, I get the idea. So we're out of action?"  
"Yes."  
"Can you fix it before Sonic gets back?"  
Porker shook his head. "It'll take weeks to fix this." Sonic and Tails arrived back as he spoke. Sonic slammed open the trap door and hurried in, looking worried.  
"What happened?" he demanded. "Why didn't you answer when we called? We thought the Badniks had captured you."  
"The communicators won't work. I'll explain." Porker began to explain but Sonic was snappy and impatient and didn't care for the pig's explanations anyway, as they rarely made sense.  
Amy butted in. "We were attacked by Badniks and they've given Kintobor a virus."  
Sonic looked surprised. "Why didn't you both smash them?"  
"I didn't have my crossbow. I had to use my hammer, and while I was doing that a few of them attacked Porker."  
"Who hid somewhere?" Porker looked away.  
"Well, anyway," said Amy quickly. "Porker, just get it fixed ASAP, and we just have to wait."  
  
Someone else at this point had just finished waiting. The famous freedom fighters were out of business. Playtime. 


	4. Turncoat

Creamed This story is set after my Sonic Adventure 2 adaptation, which you ought to read first as it's completely different from the story in the game. I have never played on Sonic Advance 2, I have no idea what Cream's official story or personality is. All characters are copyright to whoever.  
  
Part 3: Turncoat  
  
Sonic crumpled something small, electronic-looking and very expensive in his hand. "This is dull," he stated.  
Amy hit him with her hammer. "Cream hasn't complained once in two hours. You've only just arrived."  
"I arrived half an hour ago."  
"And you haven't stopped moaning since then. Come on, get to work."  
"Who made you boss?"  
"The hammer." She swung it again and Sonic caught it with a blur.  
"My turn then," he tried to pull it off her but she twiddled it out of his hands and clipped him on the head yet another time.  
  
They were supposed to be re-connecting all the systems up once Porker had cleared the virus from them. Porker, and Tekno who'd been conscripted to help, hadn't got as far as they predicted in fixing the virus, and suggested that the rest of the gang could tidy up the workshop while they were waiting. Amy had immediately stepped in as supervisor and was thoroughly enjoying her job. The rest weren't so keen and Sonic was pointedly being as clumsy and destructive as he could with the pig's delicate gizmos.  
"Sonic the Hedgehog saves the world. Sonic the Hedgehog fights off evil," Sonic stamped on something complicated. "But you won't find a single newspaper that tells you Sonic the Hedgehog is a house-cleaner."  
"We will when I tell them." Amy bopped Tails casually. "Keep it up, there."  
"That thing's gone to your head," Tails ducked as the hammer whooshed above him.  
"And how're you two getting on?" Knuckles and Cream cowered behind the treadmill they were shifting.  
From the other end of the room, Porker and Tekno gave a cheer. "Have you got anywhere?" asked Cream hopefully.  
"We've made a breakthrough."  
"Well when you come up with your solution, call us. Let's go, guys." Sonic's patience had finally given out. Everyone else agreed readily. "Here, Amy, wait a minute," he said as the rest of them filed out, or in Tails' case jumped through the broken roof.  
Twenty minutes later he strode out triumphantly onto the lawn holding the infamous hammer. "Whew," said Tails. "How did you get it?"  
"I have to go out with her on Saturday," he groaned. The others dutifully made sympathetic sounds. "And you've got her share of the washing up for two weeks."  
  
He walked up and down the rows of robots. Unlike the others, these had been built properly. The little light there was gleamed off the shiny surface of the huge metal bugs. When he was ready, they would sweep out into the world and destroy the entire Emerald Hill Zone. He would not rest until it was a smoking wasteland.  
Then, and only then, with all resistance annihilated, could he proceed to his real objective.  
  
Sonic was finally doing something he considered useful. He was at a theme park. "Dare you to go on that one," he said, pointing to a roller coaster that dropped from two hundred feet to ground level, corkscrewing the whole way. Even looking at it made Amy feel dizzy.  
"Okay," she said.  
"Hey, Sonic!" came a call from the hot dog stand. Tails and Knuckles jogged over. "Fancy meeting you here."  
"Yes, fancy," glared Amy. "Such a coincidence." Sonic looked innocent.  
"Hey, a deal's a deal. I didn't know they'd turn up."  
"Are you sure?"  
"Nearly."  
"Fair enough. I think I'll have another go at that archery game." Sonic hurried after her.  
"Beat it, you two!" Tails and Knuckles gave each other an 'it was worth a try' look and ambled off. Amy grinned.  
  
"Looked like Sonic's enjoying himself," commented Knuckles.  
"Yeah. I bet he's having even more fun than when he was Robotnik's prisoner. Oh, hi Rouge." Knuckles spun around.  
The bat nodded to him. "Howdy."  
"What are you doing here?"  
"Having fun. What would you do at a theme park?"  
"I mean. aren't you on the run?"  
"Here seemed as good a place to hide as any. No one notices me when it's this crowded." Rouge did in fact hate crowds and queues but she didn't tell them that. Tails chose that moment to fly off in search of something else to eat. Rouge asked quickly, wondering whether to hope. "Have you decided about the Island?"  
Knuckles didn't know how to answer. Luckily, he didn't have to. "What the." A tingling swept through him. A familiar sparkling just under his skin."  
"What's up?" Rouge looked surprised and suspicious, as if Knuckles was making something up to avoid answering.  
"It's the Chaos Emeralds, I think. I'm not sure." Rouge was uncomprehending. "I've been able to sort of sense them. That's how I found the Master Emerald shards. But I've only had this since the Island fell, and I don't know how it works. I just think something's happening to the Emeralds."  
To both of their surprise, Rouge found she believed him. "We'd better check. Where are they?"  
"At the top of the Control Tower, c-" Knuckles was about to kick himself. Rouge did it for him, one steel-booted foot smashing the breath out of his chest, the other splintering his shin.  
"Thanks, sucker." She leapt into the air and flew. Knuckles became a fading dot and blended to nothing in the teeming crowd. Rouge laughed out loud in triumph. To think she'd almost given up this life when G.U.N. was everywhere and there was no rest, day or night. She'd been ready to never steal again. What a loss that would have been. Thieving was her life, and she would not renounce it so readily for a second time.  
Now G.U.N.'s power was waning, and she could blend in again. And the Chaos Emeralds were almost hers. She hovered above a roller coaster for a minute to congratulate herself. A carriage whooshed past, and a huge padded fist caught hold of her wing. The world blurred and she was yanked away from it.  
Then she was hurtling down a tunnel of speed, pain throbbing from where Knuckles was crushing her. "You traitor!" he roared over the wind.  
"Let go of me!" Rouge swung her leg up over the side of the carriage. "KIHAI!" and she managed to kick him in the head as she flipped onto the cart. Knuckles grunted and threw a fistful straight into her. She braced herself, but still collapsed lie a doll.  
"I nearly trusted you." Knuckles' violet eyes were filled with hate. She pushed her clenched hand six inches into it with a squelch. "Aaagh.!"  
"I'll see you later," she began, but the cart twisted and threw her off balance. By then Knuckles had finished rubbing his eye and wouldn't let her escape. "You ain't gonna quit, are you?" He shook his head, then lunged forward as she opened her wings. Her steel boots buckled and cracked as Knuckles crushed them.  
She landed yet again, and punched him hard. It would have made more of an effect if he'd been a brick wall. They both faced each other, ready.  
The cart ceased climbing and began to fall.  
  
Rouge spread her wings and raced away from the park, aware of Knuckles gliding behind her. She outdistanced him with ease, and within minutes she was approaching the huge trunk of the Control Tower. Trusting fool.  
The glass dome at the top had already been shattered. Rouge landed lightly in the middle of a critically untidy workshop. A quick search revealed the Emeralds to be stacked up in a corner, out of the way of the techno-mess. Rouge deliberately crunched as much as she could as she walked over to them; she'd always hated computerised things.  
"Rouge!" She turned around. It was Knuckles' pig friend. "What are you doing here?" And he was scared out of his wits, too. She picked up a chunk of metal and pitched it directly onto his forehead. He toppled over with a comical squeal.  
Someone was trying to sneak up on her. You couldn't not be heard by this bat. Rouge turned around. It was just a small kid rabbit. "Get away from the Emeralds, whoever you are."  
"Make me."  
"I said, get away. Those don't belong to you. Go, now." said Cream. Cheese the chao socked the bat over the head. "These things belong to the Doctor," said Cream, stuffing them into her backpack. "Let's go, Cheese." 


	5. Struggle

Creamed This story is set after my Sonic Adventure 2 adaptation, which you ought to read first as it's completely different from the story in the game. I have never played on Sonic Advance 2, I have no idea what Cream's official story or personality is. All characters are copyright to whoever.  
  
Part 4: Struggle  
  
Sonic hadn't been having as bad a time as he'd predicted. It was late evening, and they'd left the theme park in order to walk along the Emerald Hill Zone in the sunset. He'd much rather smash some metal, but there was no action around here anymore, and this was better than helping Porker fix his ruddy workshop.  
  
Knuckles was finding that there was a lot of action available if you knew where to look. He glided smoothly through the roof and found his enemy sitting on the floor, rubbing her head. "If I ever see another rabbit again, it'll be too soon."  
"Where are the Emeralds, Rouge?" Knuckles glared at her. The bat scowled back.  
"Someone beat me to it, Okay?"  
"Who?" Knuckles swore to himself. As always, everything corkscrewed out of control at the slightest provocation.  
"Some rabbit."  
A rabbit? It couldn't be Cream. "A little girl? About seven?"  
"You don't have to rub it in," Rouge snarled. Knuckles relaxed. Cream had, incredibly, beaten Rouge and saved the Emeralds. What a brave little girl!  
Except that the Emeralds were still in danger. Knuckles could hear it, as if they were crying out to their guardian. He spun around, using his new sense to locate them. They were roughly in that direction.  
While he was distracted, Rouge had dived out of the tree and escaped. Knuckles jumped into the air himself and set off to find his Emeralds.  
Rouge followed him from a distance. If Knuckles did have some screwy power to track the jewels, she hadn't lost yet.  
  
Cream disappeared underground, throwing up scoops of brown earth as she burrowed. Knuckles didn't bother landing, just dived into the ground and dug after her. Rouge hovered above the grass, cursing. Then an idea struck her, and she lowered her extremely perceptive ears to the ground. She could easily make out the two of them moving. She followed carefully.  
  
Sonic and Amy were interrupted by a breathless Tails. "The base has been attacked!" he panted. "Someone's taken the Emeralds, and Cream's been captured. Porker's unconscious, and I can't find Knuckles. You'd better come quick."  
  
The soft soil around him vanished, leaving Knuckles to fall. He landed two feet down, and sprang to his feet instantly. He was in an underground base: a huge cathedral-sized excavation from one of the mountains in the Hill Top Zone. The floor, walls and roof were rough rock, but the den was filled with steel.  
Two armies of robots were lined up in ranks, facing each other. Each one resembled a shiny, mutant mechanised wasp. Each one was covered in weaponry. Cream the Rabbit was running to the far end of the lair, towards a huge machine. It was like a huge bush, with steel vines tangled up all around it, anything else that was there lost in the confusion. On top of it stood Someone.  
  
Knuckles growled. The Echidna reached out a hand and helped the girl up onto his pedestal. "Excellent, my dear. Now you know what to do." Cream swung her bag off and pulled an Emerald out of it. She smiled at Knuckles, but all her kindness and innocence had died to reveal scornful triumph. She slotted the ruby jewel into the end of a cable.  
Dr Zachary turned to Knuckles. "My army," he indicated the massed forces. "Not as good as Guardian robots, I know, but a tad more waterproof. Perfectly capable of turning the surface to dust."  
The old man leapt down off his machine. "You couldn't have thought I wouldn't return, when I disappeared so blatantly? Or did you just forget about me? Well, my friend, the time has come to wish you hadn't."  
Knuckles couldn't think of anything to say to that. The old man grinned evilly, only half of his mouth responding. The cybernetics on him looked twice as black and sinister then they had been last time. He advanced down the thin corridor of space in between the androids militias.  
"You haven't yet beaten me, Zach. I'll just smash you up again."  
"Pah! Last time I was an old man, faithful that my enhancements and my robots would win for me. Now I have experience." He cackled. "Go and join the rest of your people, Knuckles, in Hell!!"  
Knuckles dived and rolled as a wave of red fire blasted over him. He ran towards Zachary, weaving from side to side as sheets of laser narrowly missed him. He cannoned into the old mammal, sprawling him on the floor.  
The doctor flipped over, shooting a dart of fire into Knuckles. The red melded with his fur, and melted his skin. "Sh-"  
Knuckles cut off, jumped into the air and glided at Zach. He barrel- rolled to avoid laser-fire and landed behind him. He threw a punch, which clanged against a metal dreadlock. The Echidna swayed, but didn't fall. Instead, he turned and smashed Knuckles off his feet.  
The red Echidna had time to get to his feet before Zachary opened fire for another time. He charged, Zach's shot's flying above and around him, until he grabbed the cyborg's neck and swung him onto the floor. Zach shot, searing the feeling from his left arm.  
  
"Finished, sir!" called Cream.  
"Carry on!" replied Zachary. Cream walked over to a control panel.  
"Hold it right there." A white shape was fired like an arrow from the ceiling into the rabbit's back. Rouge clutched the girl's ears and hurled her bodily off the panel. She caught Cheese by the bow tie and buried her fist in him. "I do not get beaten by pipsqueaks like you two," she explained. "Understand?"  
Cream ran at her, looking small and pathetic next to Rouge. Then she flipped over Rouge's head, landed, spun, and slapped Rouge across the face with an enormous ear. Rouge stepped backwards into a fighting stance, and Cream attacked again. Rouge did something intricate with her limbs and Cream was flipped onto the floor, stunned.  
  
"Rouge!" Knuckles muttered to himself. She'd followed him! Still, whatever Cream had been about to do couldn't be good. He ran down towards the machine that was holding his Emeralds. Zach's shots whizzed over his head, but he could deal with the old man later.  
Cream and Cheese both pounded Rouge from different directions, hammering her backwards. She fought like no seven year old Knuckles had seen before, and while Rouge could almost certainly finish her, her chao was always just in the right place to hit where it hurt.  
Knuckles grabbed her by her ears. She squeaked in surprise and was wrenched off her feet as he pulled up. Then Cheese was at him like a wasp, buzzing and slashing at his eyes. He dropped the girl and engulfed the chao in one fist. It bit hard, but Knuckles squeezed until it gave up.  
Cream faced him, raising her fists. Her legs were sliced from under her in a blur and Rouge pinned her to the floor. "I hate spoilt kids," she growled.  
  
"No!" shouted Zachary, "You will not ruin me again! I have waited eight thousand years not be defeated!" He fired at where Knuckles had been. An unconscious chao thudded to the ground, its eyes wide swirls. Zachary gyrated to follow Knuckles, but the Echidna dropped from the sky on top of him.  
Knuckles snapped his robotic arm/firearm in a mist of sparks. Zachary punched him hard in the face, and Knuckles grabbed his other arm on its way back. Zachary was immobilised as Knuckles coiled it behind his back.  
"Now talk, Zach."  
"Talk?" the doctor spluttered, wincing.  
"You said you've lived eight hundred years. I'm interested."  
"A lie. I was toying with you- ouch!" Zachary went even whiter. "Very well. I'll tell you. I'll tell you about the total and utter destruction of the rest of your kind." 


	6. The Battle of the Emerald Hill

Creamed This story is set after my Sonic Adventure 2 adaptation, which you ought to read first as it's completely different from the story in the game. I have never played on Sonic Advance 2, I have no idea what Cream's official story or personality is. All characters are copyright to whoever.  
  
Part 5: The Battle of the Emerald Hill  
  
The old man shook his scarred head to shake the few white dreadlocks from his eyes. The three black artificial ones clunked against each other. "When Robotnik was defeated, I escaped into the plumbing system. I soon found that Cream had followed me. She was very young, but smarter then any other child I've ever seen. She accompanied me when I escaped to Mobius.  
"What's this got to do with the Echidnas?" interrupted Knuckles.  
Zachary scowled. "I'm getting on to that. I just wanted to say what an incredible child the rabbit was, with such a brilliant chao." Knuckles caught his triumphant expression and glanced around.  
Cheese, far from stunned, was sitting smugly on the control panel. Knuckles and Rouge both leapt, but the blue chao stamped on a button. The machine started, like bagpipes wailing as they warmed up.  
  
Each Chaos Emerald was consumed by electricity. Dazzling flashes danced across the fur of the five animals. Knuckles and Rouge bumped heads as they both reached the terminal, too late.  
Simultaneously, every steel wasp had two glowing red eyes. The army stood to attention in one movement. "You're too late heroes!" crowed Zachary. "Robots, reduce the Emerald Hill Zone to dust. I don't want a single blade of grass left alive."  
The robots hovered into the air, poised. Then they jetted upwards, straight through the roof and into the unsuspecting world above. Rocks fell like fatal hailstones, cracking all around Knuckles frighteningly.  
"Get out of here!" he yelled to the others, who were already leaving- Zachary and Cream were dodging boulders in an old egg mobile, and Rouge was flying. Knuckles leapt at the wall and shot up it, hands working too fast to see. The distance was eaten away and he found he was sitting on green grass.  
They were on the highest peak of the Hill Top. From here, they could see the whole Emerald Hill Zone. The Badnik army was already shrinking towards it. "You lose, Knuckles. You can't do anything now." Knuckles spared a moment to smash the egg mobile. Cream landed and scurried away while Knuckles knocked Zachary out cold. Then he took a run up and dived off the cliff. Rouge followed him.  
  
A slow repetitive beeping bored into his head. Porker opened his eyes, and blinked until he could see properly. He was in his workshop.  
Rouge! He leapt to his feet, but the bat was long gone, as were the Chaos Emeralds. He bunched his fists and wept in frustration. The beeping abruptly stopped, and Porker stood up to see what had caused it.  
Kintobor's face appeared on one of the screens. "Kintobor! You're back!"  
"I'm still a little poorly but I'll survive. Just let me reconnect all by sensors." Kintobor had previously had the entire top floor to himself and appeared as a huge hologram, but an explosion with the Master Emerald had scrapped that. Now he just had a small laptop screen, and accessing all his sensors and surveillance cameras took much longer. "Uh oh."  
"What's the problem?" Kintobor's face disappeared and the imaged changed to one of waves and waves of robots, leaving a scorched and blackened wake. "Uh oh." he agreed.  
  
Sonic, Amy and Tails were already on their way when their wristwatches buzzed. "Kintobor here. We've got a huge Badnik army approaching. Huge. It's just destroying everything in its path."  
"We're on it," said Sonic. More correctly, the robots were on them. The trees around them flared up like torches as black shapes shattered through them. "F- ooff!"  
A metal fist sent Sonic flying into a tree trunk. He twisted around, ran up the flaming oak and jumped, spinning backwards through the insectoid. It splintered and spilt apart on the ebony lawn. Amy had her crossbow in her hand and was already surrounded by a circle of debris. Tails was flying in the middle of the swarm, and every time they missed him one went down.  
"Now this is my kind of date," Sonic remarked as he propelled himself with pneumatic force into the horde. Satisfying explosions tailed him as he bounced madly. Amy grinned and agreed, but Sonic was moving too fast to hear her.  
"Wahoo!" commented Tails. Then, "Ouch!" Sonic caught him as he plummeted to the ground. "Thanks Sonic," he said, but then they both had to dive to avoid a fireball.  
"Watch it, guys!" called Amy, "We are outnumbered." Her stomach twinged- it had always been Johnny who said that.  
"Just keep attacking," replied Sonic. The way she'd always replied. She caught Sonic's eye, and he nodded sadly, but confidently. He'd finally got over it. She grinned happily and shot a wasp in the face.  
  
"They'll never make it," fretted Lewis. "There's way too many."  
"Calm down," soothed Kintobor. "There's a way we can help."  
"Can you hack into them again?"  
"Had you not blown me up I could have quite simply. But stuck in this screen my range is way to small. I was thinking of the Tornado. You can fly it remotely, can't you?"  
"I'll try."  
"Get moving then."  
  
"These guys just don't run out," moaned Sonic. Consecutive near misses were taking their toll. They were coming more and more often. Sonic never missed, but he'd been precariously close to not hitting the last four. They must have destroyed over twenty each, but the damn things kept appearing. This army must have taken years to build so big.  
Amy dived behind a tree, twisting as she hit the charcoal to loose three shots into her attacker. There was a loud crunch, and her cover began to fall on her. "Help!" The familiar blue blur carried her clear, and Amy silently berated herself. Sonic hadn't had to save her since she was a little girl. Sonic stood her on the ground and zoomed off. She proved her worth by shooting five 'bots off his back as he ran.  
There was way too many of them. "Look out!" came Sonic's cry. She turned, too late. There was a split second vision of a robot lashing out with deadly malice- and Amy took a fireball full in the face. Burns blasted through her clothes and into her skin. Every nerve she had was reduced to nothing, and the waves of heat were accompanied by waves of weakness. In clear stages she collapsed to her knees, fell to the floor and lost consciousness.  
Sonic detonated through the creature standing over her. He sprinted over to Amy desperately, checking to see if she was alive. He spent too long staying still: he was grabbed from behind and hurled. Metal clouted his head on two sides and he hit the ground hard. Seeing stars, he tottered to his feet, and was knocked down again. Blood spilt from his face as the robots grabbed a limb each. A fifth hovered above his nose, charging up a fireball.  
Tails heard Sonic's yell and turned to look, only to splat into a tree with bone breaking force. His fur set alight as he slid down the burning tree, but he was out cold and did not notice. 


	7. Victory

Creamed This story is set after my Sonic Adventure 2 adaptation, which you ought to read first as it's completely different from the story in the game. I have never played on Sonic Advance 2, I have no idea what Cream's official story or personality is. All characters are copyright to whoever.  
  
Part 6: Victory  
  
There was a split second vision of a robot lashing out with deadly malice- and Amy took a fireball full in the face. Burns blasted through her clothes and into her skin. Every nerve she had was reduced to nothing, and the waves of heat were accompanied by waves of weakness. In clear stages she collapsed to her knees, fell to the floor and lost consciousness.  
Sonic detonated through the creature standing over her. He sprinted over to Amy desperately, checking to see if she was alive. He spent too long staying still: he was grabbed from behind and hurled. Metal clouted his head on two sides and he hit the ground hard. Seeing stars, he tottered to his feet, and was knocked down again. Blood spilt from his face as the robots grabbed a limb each. A fifth hovered above his nose, charging up a fireball.  
Tails heard Sonic's yell and turned to look, only to splat into a tree with bone breaking force. His fur set alight as he slid down the burning tree, but he was out cold and did not notice.  
  
All of them would have died, but two shapes floated down at that point. "No!" yelled Knuckles and Rouge together. A red blur struck through Amy's attackers like a meteor. Rouge swooped, grabbed the flaming fox by a tail. She swore as her gloves were burned off, and dropped Tails in a stream. Water bubbled around him and the fire drowned quietly.  
Sonic appeared in a green flash on the other side of the fireball and didn't even bother to smash the Badniks in his worry for his friends. "Is she okay? Where's Tails?" Knuckles was struck by how odd concern and panic looked when on Sonic's face.  
"She's badly burned. We'd better get her to a hospital, quick."  
"Ditto," Rouge dumped a pile of wet black fur at her feet. That was all the conversation they had time for as the main body of androids found them again.  
Sonic demolished a wide ring of advancing machines to give himself time to talk. "We can't afford to stay here and fight," he began, but had to stop as the wasps struck again. He swore with frustration- the Badniks wouldn't let them get away, his friends were dead.  
Desperately he tried all the moves he could in a frenzied lightning- fast torrent. His blue blur lightened to yellow and sparks began to fly. Sonic groaned, the sound snatched by the rushing air. He would have gone Super, if it would help his friends, but he knew he just didn't have the Chaos energy. He'd felt the amount of the stuff around him dropping dramatically ever since saving the world on the ARK. Still blue, he could not hope to be fast enough.  
Sonic stopped abruptly. He'd never thought like that before in his life. If he had, the Freedom Fighters would be long dead. Shadow and Johnny's deaths were grinding him down. But he was Sonic the Hedgehog, and if Robotnik hadn't crushed him for six years then he damn well wasn't going to be crushed now. He'd save Amy and Tails no matter what.  
Knuckles yelled in anger some way away as he took a blast of fire in the chest. Underneath his voice was a low thrumming, which struck Sonic's attention. It was familiar.  
  
The Tornado Mk. Something wobbled as if it was balancing on a wire. It fell forward, engines erupting spasmodically every time it got too low to the ground. Porker Lewis moaned as he fiddled with the impossibly confusing remote controls. He was probably too late already.  
  
"It's the Tornado!" yelled Sonic. "Who's driving?" His communicator buzzed.  
"I'm doing my best from here, Sonic. Whereabouts are you?"  
Sonic grinned. "Just keep it going straight ahead, Lewis. You're coming right at us. Knuckles, Bat, get well out of the way!" The Mobians exchanged confused glances, and extricated themselves from the battle. Sonic was left alone, facing a legion of homicidal machines.  
This was the way things should be, just him and the enemy, and no-one there to get hurt.  
  
Sonic ran. He ran in a wide arc, encircling the robots as they began to follow him. He sped up, and like insects they were drawn into his slipstream. More and more of them were trapped in a huge spiral, helpless to fight against Sonic's famous 'vortex' attack.  
On the other hand, in a Vortex, mass was crucial. And Sonic had never tried to take on this many at once. If he didn't go fast enough, they'd all break free.  
He pushed himself faster, feeling the air behind him howl and roar. He ran faster then he had on that first day in Kintobor's lab. Faster then he had when the Death Egg was launched. Faster then he had when he was fighting Chaos.  
The robots whined and ground against the air, but it kept them imprisoned. Rouge swore in admiration as she watched.  
Faster then he'd ever run in his life.  
Porker squealed as the Tornado dived again for no reason. He pulled it back on course.  
Faster. Faster then that. Sonic grated his teeth; this would hurt.  
He dug both feet into the turf and stopped dead.  
  
The wasps' nest was hurled by physics into the sky at Mach 2. The Tornado sailed right into it. It was an impressive fireworks display, which escalated into one huge globe of flames. This tumbled to the ground like a meteor and obliterated a wide area of blackened forest.  
Sonic was slammed in the back by the turbulence and catapulted twenty feet into the air. He landed in a heap and was glad the others weren't watching. He staggered to his feet, and laughed.  
"You ain't beaten us yet," he said, to the world in general. 


End file.
